Sean McVay

Sean Patrick McVay (born January 24, 1986) is an American professional football coach who is the head coach for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He became the youngest NFL head coach in the modern era when he was hired by the Rams in 2017 at the age of 30 years and 353 days. McVay is also the youngest head coach to reach and win a Super Bowl as well as be named NFL Coach of the Year. Prior to his tenure in Los Angeles, McVay worked with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an offensive assistant, the Florida Tuskers as the wide receivers coach, and the Washington Redskins as an offensive assistant, the tight ends coach, and the offensive coordinator.

Within his first year, McVay turned a Rams team that had the league's lowest scoring offense the previous year into the top-scoring team of 2017. The season also marked the Rams' first winning record and division title since 2003 and first playoff appearance since 2004. Over the following seasons, McVay led the Rams to an appearance in Super Bowl LIII in 2018, a victory in Super Bowl LVI in 2021, the franchise's first world championship since 1999, and became the winningest head coach in Rams' history in 2024. His success in Los Angeles is credited with spawning the "Sean McVay effect", in which NFL teams were more inclined to hire younger, offensive-minded head coaches.

Early life and family

McVay was born on January 24, 1986, in Dayton, Ohio, the son of Tim and Cindy McVay. Tim played football as a defensive back at Indiana University, where he was a two-time team captain. Tim and Cindy met when they were both students at Indiana, and they got married in 1981. Tim embarked on a successful career spanning four decades as a television executive for Cox Communications, and Cindy became an interior designer. The McVay family lived in Dayton until Sean was six years old, and they eventually settled in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.

Sean’s paternal grandfather, John, was a longtime football coach at the high school, college, and professional levels. Most notably, he was the head coach for the University of Dayton, the Memphis Southmen of the World Football League, and the NFL's New York Giants, before transitioning into front office roles. John served as an executive for the San Francisco 49ers between 1980 and 1999, winning the NFL’s Executive of the Year award for the team’s successful 1989 season.

High school football

McVay attended and graduated from Marist School in Brookhaven, Georgia in 2004. He was a four-year starter at Marist as a quarterback and safety for the War Eagles high school football team and the first player in school history to amass 1,000 yards rushing and passing in consecutive seasons. McVay totaled 2,600 yards rushing and 40 rushing touchdowns during his career and also passed for 2,500 yards and 18 touchdowns, leading the War Eagles to a 26–3 record, including a 14–1 record and state championship his senior year, when McVay was also named the Georgia 4A Offensive Player of the Year over future NFL Hall of Fame wide receiver Calvin Johnson.

College career

McVay attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he played college football as a wide receiver from 2005 to 2007, earning Miami's Scholar-Athlete Award in 2007. Playing in 26 games over three seasons, McVay recorded 39 receptions for 312 yards for the RedHawks in his college career. He graduated from Miami in 2008 with a B.S. in Health and Sports Studies.

College statistics

Coaching career

Early years

McVay began his coaching career as an assistant wide receivers coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2008 under head coach Jon Gruden. The next year, McVay was the quality control/wide receivers coach for the Florida Tuskers of the United Football League (UFL). With Florida, McVay first worked under Jay Gruden, who was the Tuskers offensive coordinator.

Washington Redskins (2010–2016)

In 2010, McVay was hired as the assistant tight ends coach for the Washington Redskins under head coach Mike Shanahan. The following season, McVay was promoted to tight ends coach, a position he held through the 2013 season. During these years, McVay coached multiple tights ends such as Chris Cooley, Fred Davis, Logan Paulsen, and Jordan Reed.

On January 14, 2014, McVay was promoted to offensive coordinator by new head coach Jay Gruden. He would succeed his future NFC West coaching rival Kyle Shanahan in that role. Over the next three seasons, McVay had a direct impact in developing Kirk Cousins into a franchise quarterback. Becoming the full-time starter in 2015, Cousins led the Redskins to back-to-back winning seasons, throwing for over 9,000 yards and more than 50 touchdowns under McVay's direction. In 2016, Cousins was named to the Pro Bowl for the first time. McVay's success with Cousins made him an attractive head coaching candidate and following the season, McVay was interviewed by both the Los Angeles Rams and the San Francisco 49ers.

Los Angeles Rams (2017–present)

2017 season: NFL Coach of the Year

On January 12, 2017, McVay was hired by owner Stan Kroenke to become the 28th head coach of the Los Angeles Rams at the age of 30 years, 354 days. The hiring made McVay the youngest head coach in the NFL's modern era, surpassing Lane Kiffin, who was 31 years, 259 days old when hired by the Oakland Raiders in 2007, and the youngest since 27-year-old Art Lewis became interim head coach of the then-Cleveland Rams in 1938. McVay would remain the youngest head coach in the NFL until the New England Patriots hired Jerod Mayo on January 12, 2024, exactly seven years to the day after McVay was hired by the Rams.

McVay inherited a Rams team that finished 2016 in last place in points, total yards, touchdown passes and first downs, a team later ranked as having the second-worst offense of the decade based on Football Outsiders' DVOA (Defense-adjusted Value Over Average) statistic. On January 19, 2017, veteran coach Wade Phillips was hired by McVay as defensive coordinator. On February 8, McVay hired Matt LaFleur as his offensive coordinator. LaFleur had previously worked with McVay in Washington when McVay was tight ends coach and LaFleur was quarterbacks coach.

Following a 2–2 preseason, on September 10, 2017, McVay made his regular-season head coaching debut against the Indianapolis Colts and led the Rams to a 46–9 victory in a home game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. After a 27–20 loss in Week 2 to McVay's former team, the Washington Redskins, the Rams pulled off a narrow 41–39 road victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday Night Football. During Week 4, the Rams turned a 16–24 deficit into a 35–30 upset road victory over the Dallas Cowboys, but they lost their next game to their NFC West division rival Seattle Seahawks at home by a score of 16–10. Regardless, in just five games, the Rams scored a total of 152 points, a dramatic and immediate improvement (Los Angeles had only scored 82 total points through its first five games in 2016). They went on to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars on the road by a score of 27–17 in Week 6 and the Arizona Cardinals by a score of 33–0 in an NFL International Series game at London's Twickenham Stadium for the team's first shutout win since 2014, as well as raising their record to 5–2 for the first time since 2004 (the last time the team made the playoffs) and a first-place lead in the NFC West. McVay coached the Rams to a blowout victory against the New York Giants in their highest-scoring game, a 51–17 road rout that raised the Rams' record to 6–2. The Rams would win another home game against the Houston Texans by a score of 33–7 to raise their record to 7–2, the team's best start since 2001.

In Weeks 11 and 12, the Rams lost to the Minnesota Vikings on the road by a score of 24–7 but won at home against the New Orleans Saints 26–20 to raise their record to 8–3. With a 32–16 road victory over the Cardinals in Week 13, the Rams achieved their first winning season since 2003. Although they lost to the Philadelphia Eagles 43–35 at home in Week 14, the Rams had two victories in Week 15 and Week 16. Running back Todd Gurley had 456 yards in total offense with six touchdowns to lead Los Angeles in back-to-back wins on the road over the Seattle Seahawks 42–7 and then the Tennessee Titans 27–23 road victory, the latter of which secured for the Rams the NFC West title. McVay's first season with the Rams saw them dramatically improve their record from the 2016 season, finishing with the team's first winning season and division title since 2003 and its first playoff berth since 2004. In the process, Los Angeles became the first team to have the top scoring offense in the league a year after finishing with the lowest scoring offense.

McVay made his playoff head coaching debut against the Atlanta Falcons, but the Rams lost at home in the Wild Card Round by a score of 26–13. On January 19, 2018 at the 7th NFL Honors in Minneapolis, he was named NFL Coach of the Year by the Associated Press, having received 35 out of 50 votes.